Kurzfassung

Rovers on Mars or the Moon for planetary exploration are obtaining increased importance within the
spaceflight nations. To achieve full mission success, drivability and mobility in all kinds of complex
motion scenarios have to be guaranteed. Here, proper modelling and understanding of the complex
wheel–soil interaction, i.e. the terramechanics for flexible and rigid wheels interacting with hard, soft
and loose soil, are a major driver for supporting reliable rover design and assisting in testing of the
flight model. This paper deals with the terramechanical characteristics for wheel–soil contact dynamics
modelling and simulation and its experimental validation on the basis of the future European Mars
rover mission ExoMars. The physical contact models are integrated by a multi-body system approach
and the performance of the rover mobility will be shown for various driving scenarios on hard and
soft soil.